Iron and Blood: A Triumph of the Will

Manstein arrived without having eaten breakfast.

He didn't even get dressed properly before getting into the Mercedes that Joachim had given him and drove straight over.

"Erich, why the rush?"

Ludwig Edeller met Manstein in the long corridor and couldn't help but ask.

"Where is His Highness?"

Manstein did not answer Ludwig's question; he had no trust whatsoever in this man who was loyal to the Emperor.

Instead, his eyes were filled with disgust.

"They should be eating at this time, what's wrong?" Ludwig Edeler asked again.

"It's none of your business. Just mind your own business and leave it alone."

Manstein ignored him completely and turned to walk towards the office.

Joachim usually ate breakfast in his office, while lunch and dinner were eaten with his subordinates.

So Manstein went straight to the office without hesitation.

Manstein strode in, pushing open the door, and immediately spotted Joachim.

Looking around at the workstations, Joachim's secretaries hadn't started work yet.

The German prince's office is very large, covering more than 70 square meters.

So now there are only two people, making it seem particularly empty.

"Why are you in such a hurry?"

"Not even knocking?"

Joachim, who was drinking milk and chewing bread, looked up and said.

"Your Highness, something terrible has happened." Manstein approached anxiously and handed him a newspaper: "Those leftists, whoever they know, got the information from somewhere and released it directly, saying that we are carrying out a large-scale massacre in Poz and Silesia..."

"We've had it in Potsdam, but not in Silesia."

Joachim remained calm, as he had already anticipated this outcome.

Since those leftists have issued a challenge to them, he naturally has to draw his sword in return.

As he spoke, he picked up the milk glass and took a big gulp.

"Should we stop these newspapers from being published now?"

"It's already been sent, what else can you do?"

"What should we do then? If we don't provide an explanation, our business will truly be over."

Manstein's eyes darted around, and he said shrewdly, "Should we push Wolf out?"

Although he was unaware of the conversation between Tirpitz and Wolf, his intelligence allowed him to vaguely guess what had happened.

Moreover, since that incident, Wolf is now in charge of establishing an intelligence agency and a special operations team, which is said to be dedicated to dirty work.

So now that a crisis has occurred, pushing them out to save the big picture by sacrificing the small ones is a very good choice.

"It's not that bad yet, let me see the newspaper."

Joachim took the newspaper, read it carefully for a while, and smiled calmly: "Things aren't that bad. It's just some unfounded rumors. As long as there are no concrete photos, they can't do anything to us."

"So what do you mean?"

"Those leftists don't have time to deal with us right now; they're busy fighting Berlin."

"But speaking of the Berlin power struggle, Erich, have you ever wondered who leaked this information?"

"As the saying goes, those who are highly profitable are suspicious..." Manstein almost instantly realized who it was: "Ebert, who's in charge of Berlin? It must be him, right?"

"Yes, our President Albert is currently working hard to consolidate his power."

Joachim laughed coldly.

"So what do we do next?"

"Since they want to ruin our reputation, then we'll give them a resounding slap in the face."

Joachim smiled softly.

"A resounding slap?"

Manstein was taken aback by Joachim's attitude. Was it really unwise to confront the Berlin government at this time?

"Yes, it was a slap!"

"Finding dirt on someone isn't easy."

Manstein racked his brains trying to think of dirt on Albert, but after thinking for a long time, he couldn't find a single flaw.

Because from the imperial era to the present, Albert has never had any solid personal scandals, making him almost a saint compared to other important officials.

He was neither greedy for money nor lustful, and had no record of accepting bribes. He was promoted to a member of parliament in 1912 entirely based on his organizational skills and reputation.

During the war, he even took the lead in voting for war loans to support the empire's war effort.

In January 1918, when the munitions workers went on strike, he even joined the strike committee, advocating for a limited strike that did not oppose or overthrow the government.

So in a sense, Albert had no scandals at all during the Imperial period.

If they really wanted to find dirt on them, Joachim and his people would have to start from the Republic.

But how can solid evidence of wrongdoing be uncovered in such a short time?

After a long silence, Manstein spoke: "He was almost a saint..."

"Who said we were looking for dirt on him?"

"If we don't find dirt on him, how can we slap him in the face?"

"Since Berlin says we're carrying out a purge in Posen, that's not true. Then let them send a bureaucrat to manage Posen."

"And have them thoroughly investigate whether we've done anything wrong in Posen!"

"This... this thing can't be easily checked."

Upon hearing this, Manstein swallowed hard and replied with some difficulty.

Although Manstein was not the one carrying out the orders, he knew that the location where they had buried the body was not very well hidden and could be found in two or three days.

If this matter is really exposed, then their reputations will be truly ruined.

"Therefore, Your Highness, you must reconsider." Manstein's words already carried a hint of pleading.

"It is true that it cannot be investigated, but only if they have time to investigate."

Joachim stared intently at Manstein and said confidently, "Since our President Albert has no dirt on him, we'll create some for them. We recently received news from Nikolai that a big shot in Poland has reached the border. If nothing unexpected happens, they're definitely coming for us."

"After all, we've killed a lot of Poles here, so even if the Poles are slow to react, they must have realized what's going on by now."

"The Poles are definitely itching to give us a slap in the face right now."

"Then let's give him that chance."

"Erich, go find a bunch of thugs and burn down a few villages on the border."

"I'll make a call to Berlin."

"I'd like to see who it is that will make an even bigger fool of themselves next."